Lunar Testing Lab - Topaze Baycalm soundscapes to help settle a move closer to the beach, a soundtrack for a roadtrip to the west and a summer in the sun. the album, Seashore Blvd., carries the vibe over eight tracks and is a key record for evening chill-outs. on a porch, on a patio, on a resort, on a coast, on a hill, on a cliff; take this music anywhere you want - it will travel well, and bring you with it.
//instrumental.surf.calm\\
Mount Kimbie - Sergedfrom the second ep by these Kimbie boys; hazy, atmospheric, dusty and riddled with as many lofi beats and pinched vocals as the first. some people claim these guys spin dubstep, but that genre has been sliced and diced into a soup of divergent sounds and meaningless labels that brings to boil an empty definition of a scene losing itself in its evolution. this isn't dubstep - this is Four Tet clicks and Boards of Canada waves, Aphex Twin warmth mixed with Burial vocal cuts. where does that leave Kimbie? with the greats of electronica. don't sleep on these boys and their tunes, pick up whatever you can while it's still kicking about. i'm looking for big things on their first LP.
//electronica.ambient\\
Take - Hollywoodn'tsorry to keep these tunes all hazy, but my mindsight is a bit everywhere these days. the heat's been dragging my feet and the storms have been keeping them clean, i'm not ready to leave but when have i been? i have a plan, though - which is more than others can say, i know - that keeps me shoreside for some time to keep those tunes in my head spreading, kneading, curling in the sand banks and splashing on the blue walls...i'll stay there, for myself, for some time, and then i'll rethink this 'real life' episode everyone else seems so set on setting on.
//hazybeats.hiphop\\
Big Ups:
Colin Caulfield
Grizzly Bear + Atlas Sound + Sung Tongs + every other indie band who digs indie music - Pitchfork hype = this dude. creating pop tracks with light layers and acoustic instrumentation in the comfort of his bedroom with only a mic and Garageband, Colin Caulfield is bound to get noticed by the major blogs at some point and heralded as the newest offspring of the naughties' indie explosion. it is rapidly becoming a new decade - where will music go? largely in this direction...that of bedroom pop, independent homegrown (vs road-tested) musicians who get younger and younger and noticed quicker and quicker with the advent of the internet and DIY labels' presence on the web, in conjunction with the coup d'etat of music journalism enacted by music blogs as large as GvsB and as little as this one. radio and magazines have fallen victim, and bedroom music has turned the world of music into a bottomless pit of discovery and self-exhibition that borders on voyeurism. Colin Caulfield is clearly a product of his influences, the elbo.ws and hypem indie cogs, and the wonderful ease of self-promotion in the modern world; and yes, if you scour the usual suspects thoroughly, you could find two more Caulfields for every blog that likes reverb-soaked vocals and instrumentation; but that doesn't matter - at this point in time, I discovered his music, I dig his music, and I hope you enjoy it as well. besides, I'm sick of all the stale lo-fi tape garage jams that have been suffocated blogs these days and this dude's got soul. unadultered, honest, youthful and eager.Colin Caulfield - Do
Colin Caulfield - Just A Growin'
myspace
Tonnatill
as Caulfield is a product of bedroom pop, Tonnatill is a flag-bearer of bedroom beats. Dilla inspired, Stones Throw infused, his productions are choppy, static, and head-bopping infectious - true headphone jams. if only it was easier to make a living as a musician, the world would be a more sonic place. stop paying $60 to see a popstar live...sure, it'll be a spectactle on par with the best Vegas has to offer, and sure, you might catch a glimpse of Bono's bulge or Madonna's arm fat, but those guys don't need your money. besides, most of it goes to the suits anyways. guys like Colin and Tonnatill, they're kids who sell you records in stores, deliver pizzas, make your coffee and answer your phonecalls, but their sounds are more transcendent, far more heartfelt and a lot less manufactured. they can't keep it up forever, so help save music like you would a beached whale or a large clump of wet trees in the amazon. the industry is dying, already three feet deep, and the old ways are quickly fading. support the individual if you respect the indivdual's product. hell, Radiohead are big enough to wipe with $20's for the rest of their lives, but if you buy something from their own website, the money goes to their pockets, where the same pair of hands who crafted the music hold your dollar bills (so, btw, don't buy anything pre-In Rainbows; all that cash goes to EMI and the radioheads aren't too fond of them. download the records and see them live instead). my point is this: people like tonnatill and caulfield are making music at their own expense, with little to no reward at the moment. things coudl change for them in the future - i hope they do - but that can only happen when music lovers unite and help the little man. so if you dig this stuff, go out and let them know. buy what they're selling, send them an email, write on their myspaces or whatever...response keeps people going, apathy kills hte beats. unless you want a world of Madonna's and Bono's. if that happens, I'm pulling a Beethoven and keeping my ear to the ground.Tonnatill - Drag Tide
Tonnatill - Serious School Coat
soundcloud
I'm going to be releasing an EP in support of that album I dropped a few months back, Friends. The EP is for the track 'Circus Love,' and features work from close friends of mine who also make music. I've got an unreleased b-side attached to the project as well, and everyone who purchased a copy of Friends will get a bonus track. The EP can be picked up for free in the coming weeks, I'm just waiting for the finalized artwork. After this release, I'm going to keep all things TGRS quiet for awhile, uploading a few things here and there to my soundcloud, but otherwise building up a body of work that I'll be shopping to labels once I graduate, playing more shows, and spending some time with a few collaborations I've got started up.1. Circus Love (cassette version)
2. Circus Love (Snare Bear's Quit Clownin' Around Remix)
3. Circus Love (Jason Hunter Remix)
4. Devils Eyes (The Great Red Shark cover by Toy)
5. Handful of Dust
(bonus track - Nighttime Glasses Demo)
Something I will keep up is remixing. I've done two so far, with more to come. Here they are, and I hope you dig them.
Sam Sally - Wonders Loop Circle (thegreatredshark teatime remix)
Friendly Foliage - Javelin' Capes (thegreatredshark eats beets remix)
- tgrs
